Afternoon Sail

 

What a peaceful afternoon I spent, painting sailboats as they glided across the water.  Soundless, except for the occasional crack of a sail, it was almost like watching toy boats in a pool, from my perch on the hill.  I was too busy to come here today, but came anyway.  There's nothing like a dose of Art Therapy to both inspire and calm my soul.  This has been a day well spent. Painting number 4532 in 4632 days. 

Snow Globe Boats

 

Snow Globe is such a beautiful ink for a seascape!  I love opening a new ink each day leading to Christmas - especially when I can discover one as chromatic as this!  The color bleeds into lovely turquoise and lavender on the wet paper, yet remains very dark when applied with a dip pen. The shifts are striking, and serene.  Though I'm inking every day, I find myself too busy to get them all posted, which means I'll be playing catch up and posting them later.  This one is from day 12 of the calendar, my oldest daughter's birthday. This day found us entertained by the goats, roasting marshmallows by the campfire, on nighttime "gater rides" with Nolan, Quinn and Layne, and playing a new card game with Michael dubbed Aww Shucks with Danny and the boys!  What fun the holidays bring, and it's small wonder I can't seem to get my posting in!  Painting number 5041 in 5041 days. 

Baltic Breeze

It's so exciting to open the very first ink from Diamine's Inkvent Calendar 2024!!  This is the best possible advent calendar for any artist! I get to open a little present each day right up to Christmas, and create tiny masterpieces with each one!  I dropped this ink into a wet sky abs allowed it to spread down naturally.  The chroma that resulted was so lovely!  I then penned in the foreground with a glass dip pen, using a wet brush to move the ink a little.  I meant to try a little bleach, too, but forgot until just now.  I can't wait to see what tomorrow's ink will be!  Painting number 5206 in 5206 days. 

Lakeside Pavilion

SOLD

 

I love returning to Lakeside, enjoying those cool breezes off Lake Erie.  The Pavillion here is spectacular, steeped in history.  Mom and I arrived early enough to get some ice cream and sit along the coastline, and it even got quite chilly!  I wish I had brought my jacket down to the water, and u went forget it again.  It's certainly much cooler than the 90s we left behind in Missouri.  This starts three days of painting inside Lakeside Chautauqua, with a wet paint sale on the beach Sunday, during the Wood Bottom Boat Show. Come enjoy this beautiful place and see all my work from 1:30 to 3:30 on Sunday!  Painting number 3839 in 3839 days. 

Sunset Sailboat

 

Finding a sailboat anchored along the coast, with the sun setting behind it?  Priceless!!  It's fun to explore that sunset color with ink and watercolor - and pushing a bit to the violet in the very dark shadows.  I find watercolor more challenging than oil for sunsets - which means I need to do more of them!  I love going to my oils for that quick dash of fleeting light, so creamy and predictable they are.  Painting number 3307 in 3307 days. 

Regatta

Any morning painting sailboats is a morning well spent!  The sky was so dramatic early, that I set up immediately at water's edge to capture it in oils. I had much of the scene in before the sailboats entered the water - so it was easy to position them as they set sail on the surface.  What a lovely morning to paint such a perfect summer scene!  Painting number 4296 in 4296 days. 

Sailing Inked

What fun it is to capture the sailboats in motion with pen and ink!  This TWSBI Eco fountain pen delivers a smooth line and a little more ink than a few others that I have, which I love for a quick sketch!  It is loaded with Levenger's Raven Black ink, and is probably mixed with a bit of their Cocoa Brown because I did not rinse the pen or between fillings!  Oops!  I was in a hurry, in my defense.  I'm working on several paintings to bring to a show down at Osage Beach, and this is one of them. Looking forward to more beautiful days on the lake!  Painting number 3097 in 3097 days. 

Three Boats Sailing

A day spent at lake's edge, painting sailboats, is a day well spent.  The quiet sounds of the lake are the perfect backdrop for a little painting.  This one is miniature at 4x4 inches, and done in acrylic for speed of drying.  I still prefer oils in the field, but acrylics do have their place. Painting number 2165 in 2165 days.

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Five Boats Inked

My first drawing on site at the yacht race at Weatherby Lake is so exciting!  With the quick movement of the sailboats, I sketch furiously, trying to capture that motion in action!  As the yachts came back around, I picked up another sheet of paper, and inked as fast as I could, until they were very small one the distance.  One more pass, and I had all I needed from these beauties. A day spent on the lake painting is a day well spent!  Painting number 2079 in 2079 days, and this one has a new home!

sold

Yacht Race Day

There is something SO peaceful about setting up my easel lakeside, with the sailboats gliding over the surface of the water.  The yacht races are a favorite subject matter, especially for this Midwest girl!  There is nothing like painting and sketching quickly, trying to capture all that movement while it lasts!  The color on Weatherby Lake is perfect for painting today, with gorgeous weather to match!  Each nice day is a gift as we head deeper into fall. Painting number 2078 in 2078 days.

Race Day

This is the first time I've been able to capture a regata in progress!  I arrived on site just as they were ready to go, so I set up quickly.  As these first two sailboats made their turn, I painted fast and furious to get those values and hues in!  I did not take a reference photo.  In fact, it never occurred to me until I saw some of the other artists looking at their phones.  I guess I've gotten so used to painting from life that I don't even think of changing my process.  The benefit is that I walk away with a fresh painting that isn't overworked and cluttered with the details of a photo.  Just another super fun adventure in plein air!  Painting number 1715 in 1715 days.

Oil on panel, 14x11
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Lakeside Sailing Inked

The sailboats moved in and out of the harbor, families playing in the water together, and I had to paint them.  Standing in a sliver of shade, I grabbed my favorite pen only to find it out of ink! Oh no!  After trying to coax the last little bit of ink out of my fountain pen, I gave up. I tried several pens before landing on this Le Pen, which I don't care for normally, but it does move with water, and that is what I needed.  Today's lesson?  Keep that extra fountain pen in the easel bag.....where it was before I removed it!  Painting number 1650 in 1650 days.

Tallship Nocturne Batik

Hot wax, ink and watercolor on masa rice paper are my playthings du jour!!  Pushing into the contemporary and abstract, I choose a tallship in the night under the moon and stars!  First, I sketch out the scene with India ink.  Next, I paint my lightest values, letting the dry.  I then come in with a bristle brush and hot wax (I heat in a tiny crock pot), and paint these areas that I want to resist the next layers of color.  Then, I flood in my darks on the fragile masa rice paper, which I set on top of wax paper for full paint absorbency.  I am using my Daniel Smith translucent watercolors for this technique.  Once this dries, I wax the entire painting, allowing it to cool.  Now, this is the scary part.  I wad the painting up into a ball, crunching wax off randomly!  I then come back over this painting with a dark color, working the paint into all this creases I just created.  After this dries, I place the painting between layers of newspaper, and iron until all wax is removed.  I must keep switching out the paper to accomplish this.  The fun part is that this technique creates different results every time, so no two pieces will ever be the same!  This contemporary painting is the 1487th in 1487 days :)

Bold Sunset Sailing

Feeling bold today, the palette knife was calling my name.  I had sold a sailboat painting last week, and the memories of so many other seascapes came flooding back.  Using personal photos on my phone, I started this demo in class today to assist a student through the process.  This is painted entirely with my Princeton Catalyst, which I normally prefer to any metal knife.  The handle was too long to fit in my pocket box, so I took the head off the handle, holding it from the ferrel end!   It slid right off, and I can stick it right back on for normal use!   It is super fun to get chunky with the paint, while using the photo as a "jumping off point" for my painting.  It gives me some guidance, as I let the whims of the paint run wild.  Sometimes, I just have to run free!  Painting number 1482 in 1482 days.

Sailing from Ephraim

This sailboat was picturesque as it sailed from the Ephraim harbor.  With the marina visible in the distance, this scene was a little slice of everyday life along this shore.  This place is one of my favorite towns along the coast in Door County.  It is full of nostalgic buildings dotting the coastline like jewels in a crown.  What a beautiful place to paint!  This painting makes 1308 in 1308 days :)

Sunrise Sailboat - palette knife

Sunrise Sailboat - palette knife
Oil on wood, 6x6

Well, I guess I should really begin by admitting that I didn’t really use a palette knife, I used a Princeton Catalyst, #6 in the 15mm size.  I LOVE how the flexible head pushed the paint into the texture of the wood panel!  This is one of those panels I primed, but ended up with too heavy a texture for the portrait work I intended them for.  I used only the catalyst for this seascape, and it was fun!  It does work differently than the normal knife, more fluid in it’s movement across the surface.  I can’t wait to experiment more with this tool and more like it!  Painting number 1135 in 1135 days.

June Sailing

June Sailing
Oil on wood panel, 6x4
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After plein air painting at Lake Quivira, sailboats have been on my mind.  I have been longing to capture the beauty of the silently sailing vessels as they skim the water - and today I have (right in the middle of a hectic day). These scenes recall the peace and relaxation of simply being one with nature, if only for a little while.  I tried a similar seascape in watercolors last night, but found it lacking.  So today, I picked up my oils - and got the look I was after. This is certainly my art therapy for the day!  Painting number 906 in 906 days.

Sailing Serenade

Sailing Serenade
Oil on hardboard panel, 7x5
original sold - print available here

After a day full of the gym, painting class, hours of yard work, and relaxing on the balcony with a hard lemonade - I come to my easel late!  Choosing a seascape with some of my photo reference, I am painting small with brush and palette knife.  I begin by negatively painting the sky, then I drop in the cloud colors.  Gently mingling between the two with a soft sable brush, I then go in with the palette knife for some thick, juicy paint.  I treat the water in a similar fashion by painting in first with the brush, and then laying thick color on with the edge of my knife, creating a little wave action with the stroke.  This is painting number 805 in 805 days :)

Sailing Sister Bay

Sailing Sister Bay
Oil on hardboard panel, 7x5
purchase here

This large, gorgeous sailboat was sailing in Sister Bay, Wisconsin when I was last there for the Door County Plein Air event.  The skies were putting on a show of their own, with glorious color dipping in and out of the clouds.  Catching that colorplay on sky and water is a matter of brushing one color right up to the other, without crossing the line with the brush and "muddying" up those oils.  I then pulled the palette knife across the top with thick, juicy strokes here and there to add to the depth. I sure wish it was warm sailing weather right now! This painting is number 789 in as many days.

Two Ships Sailing

Two Ships Sailing
Oil on panel, 7x5
original sold - print available here

Of all the colors in the skies, I think the sunsets are most challenging.  The bold, vibrant hues seem so unnatural on the panel - and I find myself trying to reign them in!  I lay the water colors in right beside each other, stroke by stroke, careful to not mix as orange and purple will soon turn to mud.  I then take the edge of a flat palette knife through the highlight color, placing it down on the dark brushstrokes and lifting with one movement.  This creates a thick "wave" that seems to crest, and I use a plastic knife that I can curve gently as I place the mark. I think I will do a few more sunsets until I really feel comfortable with them!  Painting number 785 in 785 days.